Chapter 232 The First Payment

Sui Yu and Xiaozai took the camels directly to the west gate. Huang Ancheng was on duty at the gate. She told him and drove the camels out of the city.

After leaving the city gate, they met a caravan returning. Sui Yu drove the camels to make way. She stood by the roadside. The escort leader nodded to her and thanked her. She nodded in response. She didn't know this caravan. They entered the city and headed straight for the main road. It seemed that they would rest in Minxiang.

"Mom? The camel ran away." The cub didn't understand what she was looking at.

Sui Yu withdrew her gaze, shook the reins, and rode the camel to chase the herd of camels that had gone in the wrong direction.

The camel was sent to the desert near Yangguan. Sui Yu handed it over to the servant who was looking after the camel. She rode the camel back along the same route with the cub.

By this time the sun had risen very high, the heat was getting stronger, and the wind was also hot. Only when the camels ran could we enjoy a moment of coolness.

After entering the city, there were more people on the road. Sui Yu pulled the reins and the camel slowed down. The whistling wind suddenly stopped. The cub was so hot that he opened his mouth and breathed out, waving his two little hands to fan himself quickly.

Sui Yu looked down at him, wondering whether to go around through an alley, when he heard a commotion coming from the front. From the angry voices, it seemed that someone was arguing.

"Two caravans are stuck together again, arguing over who should give way." A man carrying a load squeezed through the crowd and said irritably, "It's not even hot enough, and they have nothing to do, blocking the road and preventing others from passing."

As he spoke, he carried his load and turned into a narrow alley. People around him followed him after hearing the sound.

Sui Yu estimated that the narrow alley was too narrow for the camel to pass through, so she could only drive the camel closer to the eaves to enjoy the coolness in the shade.

"The patrol is here." someone in the crowd shouted.

Sui Yu looked over and saw a team of patrol soldiers running over. Seeing them, the anger of the two caravans subsided. The patrol soldiers shouted a few more times and the blocked road was cleared.

The kid was short and couldn't see clearly, so he stretched his neck and asked, "Is my dad there?"

"No."

"I've seen my dad on patrol. He's so impressive." The kid rested his chin on the camel's hump and chattered, "My uncle and I have been to the city before. My dad even took me to the parade ground. I, I even brought a drum to see him..."

After talking so much, his tongue began to get tied and he started to stutter.

Sui Yu said "hmm" perfunctorily and drove the camel forward.

Near the East City Gate, they turned onto a main road. After another cup of tea, the camel arrived at the parade ground. Sui Yu had arrived just as morning training was ending. Exhausted and sweating, the soldiers left in groups of three or five. Some had simply taken off their shirts, walking in the sun with their shiny upper bodies bare.

"Oh, isn't this Captain Zhao's son?" Someone recognized the boy and turned their gaze to the woman riding with him. The boy looked 80% similar to her, and her identity could be identified at a glance.

"Madam Captain? Are you here to look for Captain Zhao? He and Captain Gu and the others are still in the parade grounds." Although they were puzzled that the little girl's appearance did not match the rumors, they did not show any expression on their faces and pointed the way enthusiastically.

Sui Yu thanked him and approached the training ground. Before she saw anyone, she saw a camel tied under a tree, so she drove the camel over.

The people on the parade ground heard the noise and looked over. Zhao Xiping said a few more words to Captain Gu and Captain Yang, then strode out of the parade ground.

"Captain Zhao's wife is back?" Captain Yang looked over and said jokingly, "No wonder he's been so energetic these past few days. He's finally back to life."

Captain Gu shook his head and said, "You can say this behind his back, but don't say it to him in front of him."

"Yes, I know. I don't want to fight him." Captain Yang walked over and said, "Captain Hu has gone over, I'll go over and take a look too."

Captain Hu just passed by and took a glance. When he saw Sui Yu's appearance clearly, he was disappointed. No matter how good her facial features were, they were overshadowed by her dry and dark skin. There was nothing good to see. He was quite disappointed. He withdrew his gaze and left in a hurry.

"Madam Captain, I heard that you went out of the customs to do business? Did you bring back any good things from outside the customs?" Captain Yang spoke up.

Sui Yu looked at Zhao Xiping, who introduced him, "This is Captain Yang."

"I wonder what Captain Yang needs?" Sui Yu asked. "If it's not urgent, I'll keep an eye out for you. There have been many caravans returning from outside the Great Wall in the past two months. They might bring back something you're looking for."

"Do you still have the waist drum your child plays? I want to buy one for my child."

"Yes." The kid interrupted, he was only thinking about selling it for money.

Sui Yu smiled and said, "We don't have small waist drums, but we do have a few large ones. How old are your children?"

"How big is the waist drum?"

Sui Yu compared it to a size that was slightly larger than the real thing. Captain Yang estimated the weight and gave up.

"Next time I go out, I'll bring back a few more small waist drums," Sui Yu promised. "I'll give two to the children to play with."

She was reluctant to do business with Zhao Xiping's colleagues. On the one hand, she couldn't sell at a high price. If the price was too high, they would be unhappy. If the price was too low, she wouldn't get a good deal. Doing business with them would hurt both parties. On the other hand, the business was cheap. To a certain extent, doing business with them would damage Zhao Xiping's reputation.

"When will you come out again?" Captain Gu came over and asked.

"If nothing unexpected happens, I will come out in the spring of next year." Sui Yu replied.

"It's hot, let's go back." Zhao Xiping interrupted.

"Okay, we'll go back too." Captain Gu raised his hand.

Zhao Xiping shouted "Go!" and the two camels ran out one after another.

First go to the butcher shop and buy ten pounds of meat, then go out of the city and go straight back to the guesthouse.

Under the shade of the trees outside the guesthouse, Dazhuang, Aqiang, Ashui and Huaniu were still learning to play the drums. Kurban taught them seriously, and occasionally when he had free time, he also took the time to teach Anle to speak Chinese.

Zhao Xiping first turned over and jumped off the camel. He walked to another camel and reached out to take his son. As soon as he landed, he slapped the child on the butt.

The cub looked at him suspiciously, covered his butt and asked, "Pat your fur, huh?"

"You were too gentle." Sui Yu teased with a smile.

Zhao Xiping raised his hand and asked, "Then shall I slap you again?"

The cub was not afraid. He stood there and asked, "Why are you hitting me?"

"From now on, you can't interrupt when adults are talking." Sui Yu twisted his ear and said, "Go play the drums."

The cub cried out "Oh" and ran away.

Sui Yu carried the pork to the kitchen and came out to see Gan Da and Gan Er sharpening sickles with stones by the river, preparing for the autumn harvest.

The temperature has been high and the sun has been scorching these days. The twenty or thirty wheat plants in the vegetable garden are maturing very quickly. The ears of wheat are yellow with a hint of green, and they will be ready for harvest in five or six days.

Sui Yu thought about the promise she made to Zhao Xiaozai yesterday to go to the fields to harvest wheat. She planned to sell the medicinal herbs she had stockpiled in the next two days to prevent more caravans from returning to the city. If a large number of medicinal herbs came in at that time, the price of the herbs would probably drop.

"Master." Xiao Chunhong passed by and greeted.

Sui Yu called her and said, "Go get two people to move the three boxes of medicinal herbs from the warehouse and bring them to my place. Come with me into the city this afternoon."

"Yeah." Xiao Chunhong responded cheerfully.

Zhao Xiping changed his clothes and came out. He saw Sui Yu fiddling with the medicine box. He took a wooden basin and packed out all the clothes he had changed last night. After telling her his whereabouts, he went to the river to wash clothes.

"Master, the boxes have been brought in." Xiao Chunhong came in with Aniu and Li Wu.

After setting the box down, Sui Yu pulled out her handkerchief. She grabbed a handful of alfalfa seeds and stuffed them inside, intending to send them to Zhao Xiaomi in a couple of days. She also divided out some red dates, peppercorns, astragalus root, and cardamom. The red dates could be used in porridge, the peppercorns were good for sweating, the astragalus root could be used in soups to nourish the body, and the cardamom was good for removing the fishy smell from meat stews—all of which Zhao Xiaomi could use.

"I almost forgot. The pepper tree planted in the backyard of Qianhusuo has probably produced a lot of peppers. I will go and take a look when I come back in the evening." Sui Yu thought of this and muttered to himself.

The herbs were sorted out, Zhao Xiping came back from washing clothes, the drumming outside stopped, and Uncle Niu was calling for dinner.

After putting the waist drum into the house, Sui Yu asked Zhao Xiping to move the medicine box in first.

…

In the afternoon, Xiao Chunhong brought a camel, tied four boxes of medicinal herbs on the camel's back, and Sui Yu took her into the city.

Four boxes of medicinal herbs, excluding half a box of alfalfa seeds, the other herbs together sold for more than 5,200 coins. The two tortoise shells were the most valuable, followed by the ground mineral powder, and two pounds and three ounces of mineral sand was worth 1,150 coins.

When I came out of the pharmacy, it was already sunset and another day came to an end.

Sui Yu rode a camel back to the Qianhu Office. This house had been uninhabited for many years. The keyhole was rusty and the door creaked when he pushed it open.

When the cats in the yard heard the noise, they scattered lightly, hiding on the beams, behind the doors, and spying on people walking into the yard in the dark.

The yard was already covered in grass, with clumps of cat hair hanging from the roots. As I walked under the eaves, a strong smell of cats hit me in the face, though thankfully, there was no smell of cat feces or urine. Sui Yuqing coughed twice and said, "Where's the cat official? Cat official?"

There was no movement. I guess he ran out to catch mice.

"Why is the cat official here?" Xiao Chunhong was puzzled. "No wonder I felt like something was missing. It turns out I didn't see any cats in the guesthouse."

Sui Yu walked to the backyard and explained, "The cat sheds a lot in the summer, and since it's used to sleeping with Ah Shui, it often gets on the bed, leaving the mattress covered in hair that can't be brushed off or washed. Uncle Niu was so angry that he wanted to kill the cat, so Xiao Cub's father sent the cat back, planning to take it back when the weather gets colder."

As soon as she entered the backyard, Sui Yu smelled the rich aroma of peppercorns. The remaining cat smell in her nose quickly dissipated. She took a few deep breaths, and the peppercorn smell entered her lungs, and her dizzy mind suddenly became refreshed.

"There are so many peppercorns." Xiao Chunhong said in surprise, "If we pick them all, there will probably be about 10 to 20 kilograms, right?"

"After drying, it will probably only weigh five or six pounds." Sui Yu pinched a Sichuan peppercorn and crushed it. It had a strong peppery flavor and the skin was hard. It was ripe and ready to be picked.

"Go to the neighboring house of Mr. Gu and borrow a bucket of water. Leave half for the cat to drink and the other half to water the trees." Sui Yu instructed.

Xiao Chunhong responded and walked out quickly. The cats in the front yard scattered at the sound, and she only had time to see a few cat tails.

The backyard was also overgrown with grass. Sui Yu squatted down and pulled out the weeds around the pepper tree. She noticed two small trees about one palm high. They were pepper tree seedlings, thin and skinny, and were about to be killed by weeds.

"Master, the water is here." Xiao Chunhong came in with a bucket and said, "The gatekeeper of Captain Gu's house is a little reluctant to lend me the water. I heard that the stray cats in our yard often sneak into the Gu family's house to steal food, which is really annoying for the master."

Sui Yu thought for a moment and said, "Go back and weave a big net. Bring people back in a couple of days and catch all the cats."

"And keep it in the guesthouse?" Xiao Chunhong asked.

"First, take it to the street and see if anyone wants a cat. If no one wants it, we can take it back and raise it ourselves."